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Problem

In this article, we will explain how to move/migrate a zimbra server to another machine.

Prerequisites

Both the source and destination zimbra servers must be running the same version. E.g. if source is running 8.6, the installed zimbra on the destination must be also 8.6.

Resolution

In a nutshell, the solution is: stop zimbra on the source server, make a backup of /opt/zimbra, install new server, stop the old server, set up the new server's networking and hosts config, install software zcs to the new machine, substitute the /opt/zimbra on the new machine with the already made backup from the old machine, fix permissions, run a normal zcs install.

Below are the exact steps that needs to be taken, to complete the migration:

On the old server:

1. # su - zimbra

2. $ zmcontrol stop

3. $ exit

4. Make sure all zimbra services are stopped:

ps aux | grep zimbra

5. Now, you can copy the /opt/zimbra directory to another backup location, and from there to copy it to the destination server later, or you could mount external disc and copy it there, or simply copy it to the destination server (if already installed with the correct OS).

As root user, copy it to the remote machine (rsync can take a while, so before you put any deadline on a project, make sure you first rsync all data beforehand):

rsync -e ssh -axvzKHS /opt/zimbra/ 10.0.0.1:/tmp

that command will copy /opt/zimbra directory to a remote machine with IP 10.0.0.1, in the /tmp directory (using ssh). Or, you can copy it to a local mounted disk:

rsync -axvzKHS /opt/zimbra /mnt/zimbra_backup

6. Install a new server, with supported Operating System for the zcs version. The bit level (32-bit vs. 64-bit) or the Operating System build (RHEL 5, RHEL 6, Ubuntu 12, etc.) may be different than the source server.